Southern France Overview: Part 2
Ok, so it was day 5 and we had just arrived in Avignon… Let’s continue the Southern France road trip!
If you haven’t explored the first part of the journey, read about it here.
DAY 6
PONT DU GARD AQUEDUCT
So far, parking had pretty much been free everywhere until today. We went to the GPS location for the aqueduct, and the lot charged 9 euro for parking. We, along with most of the other cars, took a U-turn in hopes of finding free parking. Ultimately, this only led us to another 9 euro parking lot across the river. At this point, we were committed, so we paid and I’m glad we did! A short walk takes you to the river where you can admire the 2000-year-old aqueduct, walk along the river, climb on rocks, and watch the canoers. It is possible to walk on top of the Pont Du Gard but we felt satisfied with the views from the bottom. Gotta save time to explore other areas today!
ARLES
If (or should I say when) we go back to France, this is absolutely a city we want to stay at least one night in. It was small enough to walk around but had plenty of things to explore. Van Gogh lived there for a year and is supposedly where he cut off his ear. There are pictures posted around the town where he gathered inspiration from. I would love to find them all! (next time!)
We roamed the streets and enjoyed that it did not feel busy. Arles felt like an artsy city. Besides the history of Van Gogh, there were lots of craft and art shops. If you are looking for a local-handmade souvenir, this would be your spot. We loved the square! It was very interesting that buildings were built right into the sides of the church. The church was very impressive, having both Gothic and Romanesque features.
Arles is home to the 20th largest Amphitheater in the ancient Roman world, and it is still fully intact today - it is now used for bull fighting and concerts. Walk along the outer gate and you can peak inside the arena, without having to pay for an admission ticket. As we are traveling on a budget, we opted not to enter. Instead, we visited the Les Alyscamps Cemetery for just 4.50 euro each. This is a Roman and Medieval Cemetery. Some say you haven’t experienced Arles if you haven’t visited the cemetery. Not saying we agree with that, but we still think you should check it out! You will find one of Van Gogh’s inspiration pictures here. Fun fact: The bell tower served as a lantern for the dead.
AVIGNON
Avignon lacked the quaint feel that we desired. In our opinion, this is a city that you could stop at for the day to hit the historic highlights, such as the Palias Des Popes, but then move onto your next destination. Our favorite part of Avignon was seeing the intact city wall along the Rhone River.
After our long day of driving, we wanted a casual, relaxing evening. So we headed to the grocery, bought a bottle of red wine, sat on the steps of the theater, and watched the activities of the square. If you haven’t reached this theme yet, squares are lively and fun places to hang! Greg accidently knocked the bottle over onto me, but it was ok - my dress was purple anyway!
DAY 7
This was a long driving day from Avignon to Bargemon. We had an extensive list of potential interest points but eliminated some as we went. I was in more of a ‘let’s just get there’ mood and wasn’t feeling up for too many stops. Driving days can be exhausting if you stop at too many places. Decide what works best for you!
FONTAINE-DE-VAUCLUSE
What a charming town! I initially didn’t want to stop, but I am so happy that we did. It is full of mills, flowers, streams, and shops. If you are nearby, you HAVE to go! My favorite part was sitting on the bridge listening to the wonderful sounds of nature. Between the abundance of shade and chirping birds, it was such a peaceful place! If you prefer to be active, there are plenty of hiking trails and canoe rentals nearby.
GORDES
We did not stop here but looked from a distance. It appeared to be a neat, cliffside town. I added this to the list here, because I would stop here on our next trip if we had time.
ROUSILLON
This is a hilltop village that looks quite different from every other one we visited. It is very orange, as it is built on clay. It felt as if we were in a totally different place! To avoid paying for parking, we explored via car, driving along the tiny alley ways (I mean, TINY) and were just wishing a ‘drive up creperie’ would appear!
Fun fact: if you ever wondered if France has carnivals or fairs like we do in the US, they sure do! Along the drive, we saw one being set up with all of the rides, games, and even a funnel cake truck.
ABBEY OF SENANQUE
In front of the Abbey is a huge field of lavender. We stopped in hopes of seeing them all in bloom, but sadly we were a week or two too early. If you visit in lavender season, be sure to stop by!
SAIGNON
Saignon is a lovely hilltop village to have lunch or a coffee along your drive. The streets were full of flowers and cute cafes. We walked to the Rocher de Bellevue and climbed up for fantastic panoramic views of the valley. It could be easy to miss, as we only knew it existed from a small ‘Rocher’ sign with an arrow. We didn’t know what ‘Rocher’ meant but decided to check it out anyway. Be safe climbing! There are steep drop offs and even has a sign “not responsible for injuries.”
ESPARRON DE VERDON
Oh, what an adventure! Did you know that there is more than 1 Esparron?! We sure didn’t! The car GPS took us to a tiny town, which was an hour in the wrong direction. This was a mistake we were not expecting! Before every drive we always check the time and distance to make sure we are going to the correct place, but this time, this wrong location happened to be the same distance and time away… just in the wrong direction. This is where we scratched up the rental car on their narrow roads (costing us 300 euro….) while trying to turn around to get us to the correct Esparron.
A bit of a rocky afternoon, but once we arrived at the true destination, we were able to relax. The actual Esparron De Verdon is a huge, gorgeous lake with crystal blue water. Overall, it is a quiet, peaceful place, but if you want to bring music and have a party, you could do that too. This is a place you need to spend a whole day. Bring a towel, float, and picnic and you’re all set for a beautiful day! I swam for a short time but longed for more!
Tip: Always be sure to fill up on gas when you have the opportunity. You never know when you might be in the middle of a gorge with an empty gas tank. It’s a very stressful experience!
BARGEMON
We arrived to an amazing Home Exchange in Bargemon. The parking was quite crazy, but once inside, it was fantastic! The host was the most accommodating man we have ever met. He stocked the fridge for us, gave us tips, let us use the washer in one of his other units, and was genuinely a happy happy man. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience there!
DAY 8
ANITBES
Initially we were going to drive to Antibes AND Nice, but wound up staying at Antibes for the day, and we are so glad that we did. The traffic getting into Antibes was insane and we almost didn’t even go. Once we parked, we could finally relax. It was our first time to the Mediterranean! The water was crystal clear and the beach was sandy (not rocky compared to some other beaches). I bought a beach mat for 5 euro.. totally worth it!
We were lucky to be in Antibes on this specific day, seeing 50+ sailboats. It happened to be the Les Voiles d’Antibes sailboat race! Since 1996, it kicks off the Mediterranean yachting season. It was so neat watching all of the different types of boats and sails. After watching the boats sail away in the morning, we found a rocky nook and watched them race back in the afternoon. Today was a fabulous day!
DAY 9
BLANC MARTEL TRAIL
This was a very tough but rewarding day. Blanc Martel Trail really challenged us! Some moments were brutal, some were relaxing, and some were full on amazing. Between the stairs, rocks, snails, and tunnels, this trail has a lot to offer!
It is important to note that this is a one-way hike. Greg bought our shuttle tickets in advance. We parked at La Palud Sur Verdon for the 830am departure. The shuttle dropped us off at the starting point and would pick us up at 330pm at the trail end. We had to be sure to complete the hike by then! We finished with about an hour to spare.
The first hour of the hike was brutal. It starts with a steep descent into the gorge and was terrifying underfoot. This was by far the hardest part of the entire hike. All I could think about was my fear of falling and sustaining a serious injury. At one point, we saw a lady laying on the ground, crying from what looked like a dislocated knee. This was even before it started to rain! Talk about making me even more nervous!
The tale holds true: if you have your rain jacket, it won’t rain… if you don’t bring it, it will… (nope, we didn’t pack ours). Had this been a beautiful sunny day, this hike would have been even more difficult. Shade is sparce and water stops are non-existent. Be sure to pack plenty of water!
After the initial descent, things got much easier. I was finally able to start enjoying it as much as Greg was. It leveled out for a while, but then it was time to climb. For us, climbing up is much more enjoyable than descending. We stopped for lunch beneath an overhanging cliff, which offered protection from the rain. It was nice to get somewhat dry and refueled. This was right after a slippery hike up and down steep staircases. Next was a nervous walk along the cliffs. Scroll below for LOTS of photos!
We were rewarded with amazing views of the gorge and its turquoise water. It was gorge-ous! We relaxed on some rocks along the river. It was tempting to jump in and swim, but there were many signs around warning us that swimming is prohibited. As it is part of a hydroelectric dam, it could flood at any time without notice, even in perfect weather.
Be sure to have your flashlight ready for this next part. There are 2 tunnels, with the second one being long, pitch black, and with ankle deep puddles in some areas. This was terrifying as we entered! I thought we might be going the wrong way, but this was the only way to go. We held hands into the darkness and got our phone flashlights out. Even though scary, it was a pretty cool experience!
We were delighted to find a cafe at the trail’s end! We rewarded ourselves with wine and beer. Most of the hikers on our shuttle were also rewarding themselves in the same manner. As we looked at the gorge from the ending lookout point, we felt very accomplished! Would I do this again? Probably not. Am I glad we did it? Absolutely!
DAY 10
RELAXING DAY IN BARGEMON
We used our last day to enjoy our HomeExchange and to explore the cute hill-town of Bargemon, starting with eating pastries from the local boulangerie. Sometimes you just need a day with no plans and no alarms! We spent most of the day catching up with our remote work.
For our final evening in France, we went out for dinner in the square. As we had been sharing fast meals or cooking at home, this was very special! We did not have reservations, but thankfully they were able to give us a table. Luckily, we went when we did, because they were turning people away just 15 minutes later! We each ordered a pizza. I stuck with a personal favorite- goat cheese and honey. As we hadn’t tried escargot yet, Greg went out with a boom and ordered it. It wasn’t our favorite, but when in France, you’ve at least got to try it!
Exploring Southern France was amazing! It has been a highlight of our entire European trip. We only tackled a small portion of it, leaving us much more to explore in the future. We will absolutely need to go back one day!
Where do we go next? Italy!
Are you planning your next journey? Comment below or reach out to us at Connect Travel Adventures!